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H.M.L.C.Q. 381

Early history

Ordered
and delivered as a Landing Craft Infantry (Large) for the US Navy she was built
by George Lawley & Sons, Neponset, Massachusetts. She was laid down October 9th
1943, launched on October 29th 1943. She was an ‘LCI 351 class’ vessel, built to
a revised design; the superstructure was enlarged and now occupied the full
width of the ship, removing the main deck walkway access fore and aft. The
original bridge, which formed the front of the superstructure, was replaced by a
raised circular structure located roughly amidships on the superstructure. The
defensive armament was reconfigured to reflect this new layout, and was
increased to five 20mm guns, four were mounted on top of the superstructure in
tubs at each corner, and one mounted on the bow..

She was transferred to the Royal Navy under the lend-lease
agreement on November 1st 1943 and commissioned as LCI(L)-381. She was part of
LCI(L) Flotilla 265 along with LCI(L) 382, 383, 384, 385 and 386;
they sailed from Norfolk, Virginia to the UK in December 1943.

Operation NEPTUNE

LCI(L) 381 participated in
the Invasion of Normandy, 6 June 1944 as a unit of 265 LSI(L) Flotilla in
company with LCI(L) 374, 375, 382, 383, 385, 386, 387, 388, 389, 390, and 391,
landing elements of the Royal Ulster Rifles, in ‘Queen’ sectors of Sword beach.

Conversion to an Administration Ship

Early in
1944 LCI(L) 381 was one of twenty vessels that were converted to Landing Craft
(Administration) vessels; all were ‘LCI 351 class’ vessels. The designation LCA
already existed, so the suffix Q was chosen for the new classification. The
conversion involved the creation of extra office spaces and addition single
cabins were installed to accommodate staff officers.

Allocated to the East Indies Fleet

At the
end of 1944 LCQ 381 was allocated for service with the East Indies Fleet and
sailed for India, probably early in January 1945. After the D-Day landings plans
were made to relocate large numbers of Major Landing Craft from the UK to the
Eastern theatre under the code name ‘APPIAN’. Convoys of craft, referred to as
‘Flights’, sailed for India and Ceylon calling at Gibraltar, Oran, Malta, Port
Said, Aden, and Bombay; the first Flight, ‘A’ sailed on November 15th 1944. LCQ
381 sailed with Flight ‘G’ as Senior Officer Landing Craft, departing Falmouth
on February 24th 1945 in company with LCTs 485, 1111, 1159, 1160, 1161, 1309,
7002,] and MFVs 1520, 1521, 1522, 1523, 1539.

On reaching India she was initially based at the Cochin
Landing Craft Base, HMS CHINKARA. No information is available about her
activities until she was allocated to participate in operation ZIPPER in
September 1945. By this time she was based in Madras, Southern India, possibly
under H.M.I.S. ADYAR, the local Naval Bas. For this operation she moved to
Mandapam to join the assault force convoys assembling there.

Operation ZIPPER

After the Japanese surrender
plans to accept the surrender of Singapore were put into action, originally this
was part of Operation ZIPPER but political constraints meant that no landing
could take place until after the signing of surrender in Tokyo on September 2nd,
1945. The delays meant that all plans were now to change; thus, the reoccupation
of Malaya would take place in three phases. Phase one would be the recapture of
Penang Island (Operation JURIST). Phase two would be the recapture of Singapore
by the 5th Indian Division (Operation TIDERACE). Phase three would be the sea
borne assault of North West Malaya in the Port Dickson, Port Swettenham area
with landings near Morib with the 25th Indian Division and the 37th brigade of
the 23rd Indian Division; this was a modified ZIPPER, carried out as planned and
rehearsed, but the covering air and sea bombardment had been cancelled. The
forces participating in these three operations were escorted by the Battleships
NELSON, flying the flag of Admiral Walker, and RICHELIEU, the cruisers NIGERIA,
CLEOPATRA, and CEYLON, with air cover from the 21st Aircraft Carrier Squadron,
comprising of ROYALIST (Commodore Oliver) and the escort carriers HUNTER,
STALKER, ARCHER, KHEDIVE, EMPEROR and PURSUER, and fifteen destroyers,.

On September 1st the C-in-C
East Indies Fleet, Admiral Sir Arthur Power transferred from CLEOPATRA to NELSON
at George Town, the official surrender of Japanese forces on Penang Island was
signed on the 2nd. At 08:00 the following day 400 Royal Marines under the
command of Lt. Colonel G B Grant were landed from the LSIs PRINCESS BEATRIX and
QUEEN EMMA. This was Force Roma, formed in July from the Marine Detachments
aboard NELSON, CEYLON, NIGERIA and PHOEBE,
At 0500 hours on the 8th NELSON in company with the light cruisers CEYLON and
NIGERIA, escorted by destroyers NUBIAN, PALADIN and RELENTLESS sailed from
George Town to cover the ZIPPER assault convoys on route to their assembly point
off Port Swettenham: they were to be joined by the escort carriers EMPEROR,
HUNTER, KHEDIVE, and STALKER to provide air cover for the landings.

LCQs 381, 391 and 491 sailed
from Mandapam with convoy JMD1B on August 29th for Operation ZIPPER. LCH 101,
168 & 248 in company with LCI(L)s 115, 121, 127, 136, 183, 217, 256, 266, 277,
305, 311, sailed from Mandapam, India on August 31st in assault convoy JMD1C.
Other convoys had sailed from Cochin, Madras, Vizagapatam, Calcutta, Chittagong
and Rangoon. The ZIPPER assault convoys converged on the Malayan coast off Port
Swettenham. Once assembled at first light on September 9th the ships of the
assault convoys formed into two assault groups’ code named W 1 & W 2. As for
operation DRACULA Senior Officer' Assault Group W1 was aboard HMS NITH and that
of W2 aboard HMS WAVENEY. On reaching the lowering point off Morib the Assault
Group Senior Officers transferred to the LCHs, It is not clear which Landing
Craft Headquarters were used by which assault group. The landings were not a
success, numerous factors and mistakes made by the need to revise the plans
several times resulted in stranded vehicles and ships; the beach survey was
wrong, the sand was not suitable for heavy machinery which bogged down and
blocked the beaches. The assault was actual an hour late in its execution, Force
W was operating on Ceylon time, not Burma time so the expected high tide had in
fact ebbed. On September 12th a new beach was opened farther south, at Cape
Rachado, where the 23rd Division landed without any of the difficulties met at
Morib. By the time the beaches were closed, Morib on 25th and Cape Rachado on
28th September, 63,838 troops, 7,337 vehicles and 25,671 tons of stores had been
landed over them.

HMS NELSON and much of the
covering forces sailed for Singapore later on the 9th once the beach head had
been establish, arriving there at 0830 hours on the 10th. Operation TIDERACE
forces had arrived in Singapore on September 4th 1945, meeting no opposition. By
1800, the Japanese had surrendered their forces on the island to
Lieutenant-General Sir Philip Christison aboard HMS SUSSEX. The formal surrender
was finalised on September 12th at Singapore City Hall. Over 90 vessels were
present in Keppel Harbour and Singapore Roads at the time of the surrender. It
is unclear where LCQ 381 went after her release from ZIPPER operations.

Post War

LCQ 381 was
returned to U.S. custody on March 14th 1946, probably at Manila, and struck from
the U.S. Naval Register. She was sold on February 13th 1948, fate unknown.